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Health & Fitness

Water Your Thoughts - The Value of Water

"When the well runs dry, we know the worth of water." - Ben Franklin. ALMU is assuring the well doesn't run dry for about 10¢ a day more 7/1. Water your thoughts about the cost and value of H2O?

Water your thoughts? What are your thoughts about the cost and value of water?

Without it, you cannot live for more than about 3-5 days. However, we take it for granted that we turn on the tap and get all the water we need for drinking, hygiene, watering plants, and just about anything else.

Benjamin Franklin once said, “When the well runs dry, we know the worth of water.” Avon Lake Municipal Utilities is assuring “the well” does not run dry. That is the basic reason why a rate change takes effect July 1. Water and wastewater rates are changing (refer back to pieces from the start of the year in and other information outlets), and the average Avon Lake resident will pay about 10¢ a day more starting July 1, 10¢ a day more starting July 1, 2012, and 6¢ a day more starting July 1, 2013.

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Currently, the average Avon Lake customer pays about $0.74 a day for all of the water needed for your house. So, for less than the price of a cup of coffee, you can drink all the water you want and use it for cooking, taking a shower, washing your clothes, watering your plants, flushing your toilet … The list goes on.

Our rate changes will help us implement a 10-year, $50 million capital plan, where we replace aging water mains, separate combined sewers, rehabilitate our wastewater treatment facility, add capacity at our WTP, and complete a variety of other projects. This will reduce the number of water breaks, reduce pollution entering Lake Erie, and allow more connections to our treatment systems to help spread out costs. Not bad for eventually 26¢ a day more.

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If the additional 10¢ a day is more than you care to pay, you will need to reduce your daily consumption by about 26 gallons a day. There are lots of things you can do to cut this usage. Waiting until your dishwasher and clothes washer are full before running them, turning off the water when brushing teeth or hand-washing dishes, fixing leaks, installing faucet aerators, replacing shower heads or other water-using devices with low-flow alternatives, planting native and drought tolerant plants, and irrigating only when needed are a few options. Here’s a website with over 100 water-saving ideas: http://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/index.php.

Avon Lake Municipal Utilities’ business philosophy is that our decisions are guided to achieve the best combination of quality, quantity, cost and service. We do this to help assure you get the best value for your money.

Are there ways we can improve the value for what you pay for water and wastewater services? Provide us your thoughts. If you’d prefer, email us at contact@avonlakewater.org or stop by 201 Miller Rd. and speak with us in person.

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